Sewing-machine



(No Modl.) 4 Sheets-Sheet J. KEITH.

SEWING MACHINE.

No. 359,573. Patented Mar. 15, 1887.

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13 00 carp-$0 7" M db a m N. PETERS. Phnloiiihognphur, Washington, BIC

(N0 Modfel.)

4 Sheets-Sheet 2. J. KEITH. SEWING MACHINE.

No. 359,573. Patented Mar. 15, 1887.

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N. PETERS. FholoLiihompM Washinflm QC 4 Sheets-Sheet 3.

(No Model.)

J KEITH I SEWING MAGHINE.

No. 359,573. Patented Mar. 15

Liven-5a 4 N4 PETERS, Pholwl ihagrmpher, Washingfion. 0.8.

(No Model.)

J. KEITH. I SEWING MACHINE.

No. 359,573. Patented Mar, 15, 1887'.

I 's\ R HHIIIJJE] N PFYEFIS. HmlmLRhogmpber. Wathmgmn. D. C,

4 Sheets-Sheet 4.

UNITED STATES PATENT BROWN, TRUSTEE, OF READING, MASSACHUSETTS.

SEWING-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 359,573, dated March 15, 1887,

Application filed Aprii12, 1886. Serial No. 198,571. (No model.)

vented certain new and useful Improvements in Sewing-Machines,of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to that class of fancystitch sewing-machines in which the work is fed horizontally in various directions .to cause the formation of stitches extending in various directions, so as to ornament the work on which they are placed.

The invention has for its object to provide improved mechanism for feeding the work horizontally in any direction required; and it consists in the improvements which I will now proceed to describe and claim.

Of the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 represents a top View of a sewing-machine having my improvements. Fig. 2 represents a section on line so as, Fig. 1. Figs. 2 and 2 represent detail views. Fig. 3 represents a front side elevation of the machine, the bed being shown partly in section. Fig. 3 represents a rear view of a portion of the arm of the machine. Fig. 4 represents a section on line a .2, Fig. 3. Figs. 5 and 6 represent enlarged portions of Fig. 4. Fig. 7 represents a top view of a machine having a pattern-wheel instead of a strip, as shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3. Fig. 8 represents a section on line 3 y, Fig. 7. Fig. 9 represents a bottom view of a part of the machine. Fig. 10 represents a' section on line 10 to, Fig. 9. Fig. 11 represents asample of the arrangement of stitches produced by a machine organized as shown. Fig. 12 represents a pattern-strip made in a fiat piece.

The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in all the figures.

In the drawings, a represents the bed of the machine.

1) represents the needle-bar, which is operated in the arm 0, and d, Fig. 9, represents the shuttle, which is reciprocated in a race and co-operates with the needle b in forming the stitches in the usual manner.

6 represents the top feed, which is located over the throat-plate of the machine and is movable horizontally in any direction thereon, and is also movable vertically to cause it to alternately hold and release the work. The feed is preferably composed of a ring, 2, rigidly attached to an arm, f, hereinafter de- 5 5 scribed, and a series of radial feet or dogs, 3 3 3 3, pivoted to ears on said ring and connected by springs 4, which have a tendency to draw the swinging ends of said dogs inwardly toward a common center. Said swing- 5o ing ends are serrated or roughened to engage the work. NVhen the feed is raised, the workengaging ends are drawn toward each other to a certain extent by the springs, so that when the feed is depressed upon the work the dogs bearing thereupon will be forced outwardly, and will thereby stretch the portion of the work under the feed, which is arranged so that the needle passes through the stretched portion of the work. I find that by thus stretch- 7o ing the work the stitches are caused to lie smoothly on even the thinnest goods. I The arm f, supporting the feed, is pivoted at g to the swinging end of another lever, h, which in turn is pivoted at i to a fixed stud on the bed of the machine, and is provided at or near its swinging end with a stud or roller, j, which bears against one edge of a pattern, k, hereinafter described. The pattern 70 which I prefer to employ is a strip of flexible sheet metal, made either in the form of an endless band supported by rollers Z l at opposite sides of the machine, as shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, or of a flat piece, as shown in Fig. 12. The edges of the pattern are cut to control the 8 5 movements of the feed, as hereinafter described. m represents a lever of bell-crank form pivoted at a to a fixed stud on the bed of the machine, and having at the end of one arm a stud, o, entering a slot, 1), in the feed-carrying arm f, and at the end of the other arm a stud or roller, q, which bears against one edge of the pattern k. Springs 1- r, connected to a fixed stud, s, on the bed a, and also connected, 5 respectively, to the levers h and 'lTt, exert a yielding pressure on said levers, whereby their studs or rollers j q are held in contact with the edges of the pattern and caused to follow the undulations and inclines thereof, and thus :00 oscillate on their pivots. The oscillations thus imparted to the lever it cause it to reciprocate the feed-carrying arm f with the feed in the direction of the length of said arm, while the oscillations of the bell-crank lever m cause the arm f to oscillate, and thus move the feed substantially at right angles to the direction in which it is moved by the lever h. It will be seen, therefore, that the feed is capable of a universal horizontal movement, and that the machine may be caused to automatically grasp or arrange the stitches formed by the needle and shuttle into any desired pattern or design, the form of the edges of the pattern determining the character of the design.

In Figs. 1 and 12 I have shown the edges of the pattern adapted to produce the herringbone stitch shown in Fig. 11.

A great variety of designs may beproduced by providing a different pattern for each design. When the pattern is composed of a strip of metal, I provide it with a series of recesses or orifices, a, formed in this case by striking up portions from the central portion of the strip, and formed to engage the teeth of a wheel, I), which is afiixed to a shaft, 0,

journaled in bearings below the bed of the machine and projecting upwardly through an opening, 0, in said bed, the pattern-strip or the operative part thereof being located just over the bed. The pattern is moved intermittingl y, it being moved only while the needle is out of the work, so that the feed will not be moved while the needle is in the work. On the shaft 0, to which the toothed wheel b is affixed, is mounted loosely a segment-gear, f, to which is pivoted a dog, 9, held by a spring, h, against the surface of a ratchet, i, which is affixed to the shaft 0. A segment-gear, j, affixed to the driving-shaft 7c of the machine, is arranged to mesh with the loose segment-gearf once during each rotation of the driving-shaft, and thus partially rotate said loose gear, and through the dog 9 and ratchet i partially rotate the tooth-wheel 1), operating the pattern. IVhen the gears f and j are separated by the 0011- tinuous rotation 'of the driving-shaft k, a spring, Z, attached at one end to the loose segmental gear f and at the other end to the bed of the machine, draws the loose gear f into position to again engage the gear j. The backward movement of the loose gear f has no effect on the pattern, because during said movement the dog 9 slips backwardly on the ratchet.

A curved rib, m, (shown in dotted lines in Figs. 5 and 6,) attached to the loose gear,.is in frictional contact with a can], a, on the driving-shaft 75' when the loose gear f is being moved backwardly by the spring Z, and thus retards said movement, making it gradual and preventing a concussion.

If desired, the pattern may be a wheel or cylinder, 76, affixed to the shaft 0 in place of the above-described toothed wheel, which operates the pattern-stri p. The operation of the pattern as a cylinder or wheel is exactly the same as above described, it being rotated intermittingly by the described mechanism. I prefer the pattern made in a strip, however, as this form enables me to embody a greater extent of pattern-surface in one piece than would be practicable if the pattern were a wheel, the diameter of the wheel being necessarilylimited,while the strip may have any length desired. Theendless-band form of the pattern is particularly advantageous, because it enables a very long pattern to be conveniently disposed on the machine, and the pattern edges may be formed to produce a succession of different stitches or designs, the change from one to another being automatic and requiring no attention from the operator.

The portion of the work surrounding the needle is unsupported from above, so that when the needle is rising the work, particularly if thin and slazy, is liable to yield or rise locally around and with the needle, and thus prevent the proper throwing out of the needleloop for engagement by .the shuttle, said loop being thrown out by the friction of the work against the thread, provided the work is prevented from moving upwardly with the needle. To prevent the unsupported work from thus rising, I provide a vertically-reciprocating finger or stretcher, 0, Figs. 9 and 10,which rises through a hole in the throat-plate in close proximity to the needle, and before the latter rises, and presses upwardly against the work held by the feed, so that said portion has no slack that can be further raised by the needle. The work is thus caused to remain motionless around the needle, and thus create sufficient friction 011 the thread to throw out the loop, and all liability of the machine skipping or failing to make stitches is avoided.

The finger 0 is attached to alever, pflwhich is pivoted at one end to an ear, (1, ailixed to the bed a, and has a pin, r, at its other end, which enters a slot, 8, in an arm, 16, affixed to one end of a rock-shaft, u. Said rock-shaft hasan arm, 1;, at its other end, which arm is connected by a rod, w,with the strap a of an eccentric on the driving-shaft 7c. The rockshaft u is oscillated by the eccentric, and the slot 8, which is eccentric to the axis of rotation of the rock-shaft, alternately raises and lowers the end of the lever p, engaged therewith, as will be readily seen.

The feed 6 is raised and lowered, to enable it to alternately release and engage the work, by a bar, a adapted to rise and fall'in the arm 0, like the presser-bar of an ordinary sewing-machinc, suitable mechanism being employed to operate said bar a. The mechanism here shown eonsists of an elbow-lever, 6, Figs. 3 and 8, a cam, g, on the driving-shaft said cam bearing against a roller, h", on one arm of the lever e, a lever, i pivoted at j to the arm of the machine and connected at one end by a rod, kflwith the other arm of the lever e, and an elbow-lever, i, pivoted at 3' to the arm and connected by a rod, If, to the other end of the lever i The elbow-lever i has a slot, a in one of its arms, which receives a stud, 0 affixed to the feed raising and depressing bar a, so that when the elbow-lever t is oscillated by the above-described mechanism it raises and lowers the bar a and the feed, said bar having an arm, a at its lower end, which has a pin, b entering a slot in the feed-carrying arm. Said mechanism is so timed that the feed 6 is raised after the formation of each elongated stitch, the feed being raised, then moved laterally in one direction, then depressed upon the work, then moved laterally in another direction to feed the work, then again raised, and so on, the direction of the said lateral movements being determined by the shape of the pattern.

It will be observed that the described means for feeding the work in any desired direction, so as to cause the formation of stitches of any desired length and direction, may be applied to many of the sewing-machines in general use, with but slight changes to adapt the machines to the improved feed mechanism. In the example shown the only changes required in the structure of the machine are the application of the shaft 0 with the pattern-operating wheel and the means for intermittingly operating saidshaft to the machine, the formation of an opening, 6, in the bed of the machine, to enable the pattern-operating wheel to project above said bed, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, the removal of the ordinary presserfoot and feed'dog, and the application of the universal feed, the levers that operate it, and the work'stretching device 0 and its operating devices. This reorganization is mainly effected by removing old parts and substituting the new for them, the chief mutilation or cutting of the machine being that involved in making the opening e in the bed. The expense, therefore, of fitting up or reorganizing old machines to embody my invention therein will be small, while the simplicity of the machine will enable it to be built new at a moderate expense as compared with other fancystitch machines capable of producing a like variety of designs or stitches.

I am aware that a work-holder movable horizontally in any direction over the bed of a sewing-machine and adapted to clamp or grasp the work has been operated by a series of patterncams rotated by the power of the machine through intermediate devices transmitting motion from the pattern-cams to the work-holder. I am also aware that a workfeeder located over the bed of a sewing-machine has been moved in any desired horizontal direction by means of a longitudinallymovable rock-shaft having an arm in which the shank of said work-feeder is adapted to slide, the machine being organized to not only oscillate said shaft, but also to move it endwise, and thus impart the desired movements to the feeder. It will be observed, however, that my invention differs from those above recognized, in thatI use a pattern-strip having two guiding and stitch-directing edges movable horizontally in any direction, mechanism for alternately raising; and depressing said arm and feed, a movable pattern located over the bed of the machine and 7 having two guiding or stitch-directing edges, mechanism to move said pattern intermittingly, and devices through which a given series of movements are imparted from the stitch-directing edges of the pattern to the top feed, as set forth.

2. The combination, with the stitch-forming mechanism, of a top feed adapted to bear on the upper surface of the work, an arm supporting said feed and movable horizontally in any direction, mechanism for raising and depressing said arm and feed, a movable pattern located over the bed of the machine and having two guiding or stitch directing edges, mechanism to move said pattern intermittingly, and two pivoted levers, h m,connected, as described, with the feed-carrying arm and bearing against the two stitch-directing edges of the pattern, as set forth.

3. The combination, in a sewing-machine, of the stitch-forming mechanism, a top feed adapted to bear on the upper surface of the work, an arm, f, supporting said feed and movable horizontally in any direction, mechanism for raising and depressing said arm and feed, a flat pattern -strip having its edges formed in accordance with the pattern to be produced and provided with teeth to engage an impelling device, mechanism whereby said strip is moved forward intermittingly, and devices through which a given series of movements are imparted from the stitch-directing edges of the pattern-strip to the top feed, as set forth.

4. The combination of the stitch-forming mechanism, a top feed adapted to bear on the upper surface of the work, an arm, f, supporting said feed and movable horizontally in any direction, mechanism for raising and depressing said arm and feed, a flat endless flexible pattern strip or band having its edges formed in accordance with the pattern to be produced and provided with teeth to engage an impelling device, pulleys journaled on the machine to support said band, mechanism whereby the band is moved step by step, and devices through which movements are imparted from the stitch-directing edges of the pattermband to the top feed, as set forth.

5. The top feed composed of the ring having a series of radial dogs pivoted to it, said dogs being connected by springs,whereby they are normally contracted or drawn inwardly, combined with mechanism, substantially as described, for raising and lowering said feed and for moving it horizontally, as set forth.

6. The eombination,in a sewing-machine, of the stitch-forming mechanism, the top feed composed of the ring and the radial springeontracted dogs, themechanism, substantially as described, for operating said top feed, and the work-raising finger or presscr and mechanism to operate it, whereby that portion of 

